@40yearoldvirgin - When a student does not finish the school year with the same schedule indicated on the application or transcript, the college folks may rescind the offer of admission. Colleges can be very picky about this. Of course, if the change was made for medical reasons, then college officials usually do offer some wiggle room but it is understandable that they expect more information about the medical reasons behind such a major change in schedule. They will want to confirm that these reasons are legit and they will also want to confirm that you are healthy enough to be fully prepared for the rigors of college life in the fall without needing to perhaps take additional time off.
Note, however, that you SHOULD HAVE told the colleges about the curriculum/school change at the time you were making it. But if you in the midst of a health crisis, it may, understandably, not have been the first thing on your mind. So, if that’s the case, you should mention this to the college officials, too. Good luck!
@Sally_Rubenstone hi, already accepted SIR to CAL. But now realizing i might not actually keep my gpa in my spring sem at or above 3,0. what are my options? is it ok to accept another uc offer or a csu offer for safety?
@junkms -You CANNOT accept more than one college offer at once. If you believe that your acceptance will be rescinded by CAL and you want to make sure that you have somewhere to go, you need to act fast. You can commit to another school (but make sure that your sub-3.0 GPA won’t hurt you there as well, as it probably will at another UC) and then you must immediately withdraw from CAL.
If you have accepted an offer from two or more colleges you stand to lose ALL offers once this gets discovered, which it could.
If your GPA is just slightly below 3.0, your first step might be to talk to your teacher/s and try to pull up your lower grades promptly. Perhaps the teacher will accept an extra-credit project or paper that will allow you to maintain a 3.0.
Oh I was referring to an AP exam score, not a grade in a class. We don’t have to send it to them even though we indicated on common app that we will be taking the exam? Thanks!
@CollegeW20-Occasionally colleges will want an AP exam score, usually to validate acceptance into a particular program. And some European universities --especially the most selective ones in the UK–will offer only a conditional acceptance before senior-year AP test scores have been received. But the typical US college does not require AP exam results and is primarily concerned with the final grade in the AP class and not in the exam score.
I was accepted into UW Madison. And, so I slacked off a bit 2nd semester senior year, and I’m scared about my IB Chemistry HL dropped from a 6 to a 4. (Note that 7=A 6=A- 5=B 4=C 3=D 1/2=F). It would be of great help if somebody can provide me with some help, as I am freaking out right now…
Freshman
English Semester B+ B
Geography Semester B+ A-
Integrated Science Semester A- A
Maths Honors Semester A- C
E-LOTE Level 1 Semester A- A-
Computer Science Semester NO A-
Sophomore
Chemistry Semester B B+
English 2 Semester B+ A
Math Honors 2 Semester B- B-
Modern World Histroy Semester A- A-
Physics Semester A- B+
Music Semester A- A-
Spanish 3 Semester B+ A-
Junior
Chemistry IBH1 IB Semester 6 6
Physics IBH1 IB Semester 6 7
Economics IBH1 IB Semester 7 6
English A Lang & Lit IBS1 IBSemester 5 6
Math IBS1 IB Semester 7 7
Spanish IBS1 IB Semester 5 5
Senior
Chemistry IBH1 IB Semester 6 4
Physics IBH1 IB Semester 6 5
Economics IBH1 IB Semester 6 6
English A Lang & Lit IBS1 IB Semester 6 6
Math IBS1 IB Semester 7 6
Spanish IBS1 IB Semester 6 6
@hooha123 -As I’ve said MANY TIMES already, colleges will not rescind for one C (or, in your case, the equivalent of a C). So stop freaking out, please!
Well Sally, you should be proud that you’ve likely saved a lot of people a lot of stressing. Hope you don’t mind if I hop on the list.
I ended first semester with everything in the A range after getting one B a semester for all of high school, and I have committed to a top 20 school. On the first week of second semester, I received a concussion during a sport practice and missed about three weeks of school. After returning, I was back for about three weeks before I left on a global education trip for three more weeks, missing another week of school. I’ve worked with my teachers to pull myself up to (likely) 2-4 A/A+s, 1-2 B+s, and IF EVERYTHING GOES AS BADLY AS IT COULD POSSIBLY GO, 2 C+s. My year is actually over now, so there isn’t anything I can do except wait. It’s likely I’ll end the year with A/A/A-/A-/B/B-, but if it goes badly it could be A/A/B+/B+/B-/C+. Given my record, (and forgive me; I’m sure you’ve responded to someone asking the exact same thing, but there is honestly no feeling of safety like being personally responded to), what’s going on? Am I in the clear?
@AnExcellentSheep -I think you should be in the clear, but once you know what your final grades will be, you can write a letter to your college explaining the downturn. Most people these days are very sympathetic when it comes to concussions because the impact of them … so to speak … has been well publicized lately. When you write the note, you can also offer to have a doctor or school counselor corroborate the effects of the concussion if the college wishes you to do so. But my guess is that they won’t need it.
Hi! @Sally_Rubenstone Hi Sally! Hope youre not getting tired of answering these, but wanted to ask… I applied and got accepted to Loyola Marymount with a 3.7 unweighted GPA and not one C on my high school record , taking multiple AP classes. I am now committed to the school and am currently in AP Lit, AP Calc, and AP Macro, all of which i currently have C’s in. I am trying to bring them all up, but if i do sadly end the year with either 2 or 3 C’s, what are the chances, do you think, that I’ll get rescinded? Thanks so much!
@calimary2011 -If I were a gambler, I’d say that you’ll be fine with 2 C’s but possibly not with 3. My best guess is that, even with 3, you’ll just get a warning, but it could turn out worse. So I suggest you work hard to pull up those C’s … or at least a couple of them.
@Sally_Rubenstone Hey Sally! Hope all is well, could use some advice:
I was accepted as a transfer student to Ohio State’s School of Engineering, transferring from Wake Forest. However, this semester has been extremely difficult, as my professors have been brutal with not giving us any curves, and making the tests much harder than they should be. As a result, I am looking at getting C’s/D’s in Physics 2 and Calc 2 (and also English but thats another story…), my other grades are solid A’s. I have been struggling a lot with emotional issues and depression here as a minority student, and Wake’s grade deflation certainly is not helping. I know Ohio State admits a lot of people with around 2.5 GPAs, and my current GPA from last semester was a 3.6, so i am certainly no slacker. I know several people who got accepted to OSU no problem straight from high school with C’s and D’s on their final transcripts, and I know OSU is not exactly an ivy, or elite public like UCBerkeley, so their standards may not be as high, but I really do not want to get rescinded! I have worked so hard this semester, and it feels like my whole world is crashing down. Will I get rescinded? What should I do at this point?
@Sally_Rubenstone
Hello! I’m a second semester senior caught between UCD and Cal at the moment. My grades have recently dipped quite a bit due to a few teachers I don’t understand well and the fact I’ve been working ~25 hours/week this semester. I’m worried about being recinded. At the end of this semester, I’ll likely end up with 3 B’s. I’ve previously had a 4.0 uw so I’m worried this huge shift will raise red flags. I know that typically B’s aren’t cause for concern, but I have not received a single B for all of HS so it might be seen in a harsher light. One if the students at my school last year was rescinded by an Ivy for 3 B’s so I’m a bit paranoid even though UCD and Cal aren’t of the same caliber. The conditions of admission for UCs say that you don’t have to notify them if you get no more than 2 C’s and at least a 3.0 uw gpa. Do you think either of these schools will recind my acceptance if I get 3 B’s and only 2 A’s second semester? Thanks!
@Sally_Rubenstone
So glad to have found this thread, thanks for calming everyone down! I wanted to ask your opinion… I was accepted EA at Princeton and have replied saying I’ll go. However there’s been a discussion on the 2020 Facevook group as to whether choosing not to take AP exams could cause an application to be rescinded. One girl contacted admissions and was told that it is fine not to take them so long as they’re not required, another girl asked the same question and was told that without good reasons not to take exams they might call it into question. I am taking 5 AP courses this year, but only registered for 1 exam as the rest will not benefit me next year - it’s a lot of money for no benefit! It is too late now to change, but should I worry yet? The conflicting responses (from two different officers) make me think it’s no set-in-stone rule, but I am a bit nervous now!! If it is relevant, I’ve gotten all As throughout high school and my grades have not dropped at all, nor has my schedule changed. The only difference is that I am only taking the national exam for 1/5 AP courses. Thank you sooo much!!!
Hi @Sally_Rubenstone I was accepted to NYU. I used to be a straight A student but now, my grades have dropped to 4 As 2 Bs and 1 C+. Though I know you said that the 1 C+ usually wouldn’t make a difference, I am an international student, and so my C+ actually has the percentage of a D in the states. Would colleges consider my grade a C+ or a D? And is there a big chance I will be rescinded ?? I am very worried right now.
@ThugLife007 -You need to contact OSU and tell a transfer officer there much of what you have said here. However, I suggest that you don’t mention the part about “emotional issues” and “depression.” Instead, you can say something like, “This is a very difficult and unpleasant environment for many minority students which is one of the key reasons that I am so eager to transfer.” If you end up with C’s in those classes you mentioned, you should be okay. But D’s could be another story. So do emphasize how hard you’ve worked despite an uncomfortable campus climate and the OSU official will probably cut you some slack … especially if you can get at least C’s or maybe no more than one D.
@sbean98 -If you are in 5 AP classes and you take only one AP exam, it’s possible that Princeton might write to ask you for a justification. So my recommendation is to be pro-active. Write to Princeton first and explain that you’d read on College Confidential that the admission officials may take a dim view of students in AP classes who skip the exams. Then say that you didn’t realize this until it was too late to schedule the tests and that you hadn’t planned to take more than one exam because the tests are very expensive and you didn’t feel that the benefits would warrant the price tag. Since you are getting high grades in the classes, be sure to emphasize that. You’ll be fine.
@ZaGongShow -Will your C+ show up on your transcript as a C+ or will it be a number in the 60s? If the latter, you might want to write to your NYU admission counselor now and explain that you have been working very hard in this class but still haven’t been able to do better than a C+. Then be sure to include a copy of your school’s grading scale so that the counselor will see that the 60-something actually IS a C+ and not a D. Although admission counselors are SUPPOSED to be aware of the grading scale at every high school in their orbit, sometimes this stuff can slip through the cracks, and it could be useful for your NYU counselor to have that information handy.
